Target: Vladimir Tod
by phantomwarrrior1
Summary: A top secret agency wants Vlad to join their team of secret agents. There's something about them that Vlad doesn't trust.  What bad could possibly happen from Vlad becoming a secret agent?  Rated T for later events.
1. Someone's Watching

Target: Vladimir Tod

I wave to Henry and walk down his front steps. A cool breeze hits my face in the warm summer air. It's been a week since school ended, and I haven't found trouble yet. Or, more importantly, trouble hasn't found me.

Although, for the past couple weeks, I've had the feeling that someone's been watching me. I walk pass the park and stop. A noise came from the bushes. There's that feeling again.

My heart starts racing; it'll burst from my chest any minute now. I know there's someone watching me, I can feel it. Do I want to look and see who's been stalking me? What if it's D'Ablo, wanting to kill me for good this time? It couldn't be, there's more than one person… unless he has some new cronies with him.

I turn to walk away, and fog blocks my vision. Wait… fog? It's sunny out here! The gray smoke chokes me, and the world goes black.


	2. Secret Agency

My eyes slowly open. Where am I? I'm sitting in a huge, metallic, high-tech chair in a dimly lit room where a desk and TV screens are in front of me. They're all on, showing video's of me! One screen on the far left shows me and Henry walking home from school. The screen next to that shows my fight with Ignatius a few months ago.

As I try to think of anyone but D'Ablo who'd want to kidnap me, a voice from the chair behind the desk says, "Vladimir Tod." The voice doesn't sound evil, but it's not so friendly either.

"Welcome. Are you comfortable?" I don't see what's so comfortable about sitting in a cold, hard chair in an unknown place.

"Uh… no! Who are you? Where am I? And why have you been spying on me?"

The stranger turns in his chair to face me. He has dark brown, spikey hair. When you look into his ice-blue eyes you feel like he can see right through you. His skin isn't tan, but not pale. He's wearing a plain black t-shirt. He smiles, "Calm yourself, Vladimir. You are not in trouble, and we do not wish to harm you."

We both sit in silence for a few moments. He taps his fingers while a thousand questions race through my head. I break the awkward silence, "Then who are you and what do you want with me?"

His fingers stop tapping. "I am Callidus. I am the chief of this secret agency, which is so secret that I can't tell you the name. We have been watching you, Vladimir Tod, and we think you are perfect for our team."

I run a hand through my hair. Me? A secret agent? That doesn't make sense. After about five minutes, an important realization hits me. If they've been watching me, then they must know my secret; that I'm a vampire.

"So… you want me to join your secret agency?"

"Yes."

"But why? What's so special about me?"

Callidus scratches his forehead, searching for a way to explain the answer to me. It takes him a long time to think about it, so I get impatient. I want answers and this guy's not giving them to me.

He notices my impatience; his face is going white and his voice raises an octave in nervousness. There's a sign that he desperately wants to be on my good side.

"I'm sorry, Vladimir, this is just hard to explain because you may freak out." He knows. That's why it's so hard to explain; he's afraid that I'll run from his offer.

"We know you have… 'special abilities,' and we strongly believe that your 'abilities' will help our agency." Something about this doesn't seem right, but it's really hard to know if I can trust him.

He hands me a card with his name and number written on it.

"We understand this will take some time to think about. So, please, don't hesitate to call." Gray smoke fills the room, and everything goes black… again.


	3. Strange Henry

When I wake up I see the blank, white ceiling of my room. The card with Callidus's number is crumpled in my hand. It's dark outside, but I can see the sun beginning to rise. How long have I been out?

I change into cleaner clothes (they smell like that gray smoke) and head downstairs. I need to tell Henry about this, I don't care how early it is. I quickly write a small note to Nelly and rush out the door.

Warm, summer air fills the world as the sun rises from behind the mountains. I run with my vampire speed to Henry's- I honestly could care less who could see me at the time. I approach the door to the McMillian's home and knock. A very bright and happy woman opens the door.

"Good morning Vlad," says Matilda in her high, sing-songy voice, "Come on in. Henry's in his room." She smiles and walks back to the kitchen. Matilda McMillian is the only person I know who can stay so happy in the morning.

I walk upstairs and open the door, nearly tripping on Henry's shoes. Henry looks at me with a smile, "I didn't know vampires were morning people."

"Henry, this is serious. I need to tell you something."

I tell him everything about Callidus and how he wants me to be a secret agent because of my "special abilities." Henry's eyes grow wide, and his mouth opens until it touches the floor.

"Should I accept it?" He looks at me like I'm the dumbest person in the world.

"Vlad… of course you should!" I wince at his sudden outburst. He stands on his bed as if he's saying a very important speech. "Dude, you'd have cool gadgets, and you'd be a secret agent! You'd be able to kick bad guy butt, you'd live an action filled life!"

"Henry, I already live an action filled life! I have a near death experience every year! And besides… there's something I don't trust about that guy." Henry sits down, then he smirks,

"Sounds like my vampire overlord is chicken."

"What?"

"You heard me. You're a vampire, and you're scared of a secret agency when you've faced much worse."

I run a hand through my hair in more frustration. Is Henry really going to act like this? He's sixteen!

"Henry…"

"Come on Vlad! Imagine how cool your life would be!"

"But…"

"Vlad. Seriously. Don't tell me you're worried or scared about facing a few more bad guys. Just think, you could get _better_ at defending yourself."

He does have a point, but something about him seems… different. He's not acting like himself.

"Okay. Fine. I'll call him tonight."


	4. Secret Door

When I get back to Nelly's I take out the crumpled card from my pocket. Should I really do this? This Callidus guy seems pretty untrustworthy, and Henry was acting beyond weird when I talked to him about this. Although, he is right. Maybe this secret agent thing will be fun. And I could use more defense tips. Plus, if I don't call, Henry will never stop bugging me about it.

After dialing the number, gray smoke comes from the phone. I cough, but I don't pass out this time. After the smoke clears, I find I'm in a strange hallway. When I look to the side, Callidus is standing next to me. "Do you ever run out of that smoke?" He ignores my question.

"Have you made your decision?" He smiles a crooked, creepy looking, and kind of desperate smile. I hope I don't regret saying this, but my gut says I might.

"Yes." His eyes are hopeful. I can see a dark glint behind them… "I've decided to take your offer."

"Excellent! Let me show you around." Callidus grabs my hand-with a _really_ tight grip-and takes me through the whole building. He shows me the lab, the gadget room, the offices, and A LOT more.

Eventually, we walk pass a door with a strange set of numbers on it: 16-18-9-19-15-14-5-18-19. It must be an important room, I can even hear noises coming from it; it almost sounds like screaming… As my hand makes contact with the doorknob, Callidus yells, "Don't go in there!"

"Why?"

"It's a room that new operatives aren't allowed to see." Okay… "Now, let's start your training, shall we?"


	5. Training

The training room is amazing. There's millions of buttons to choose the course you want to go to, and categories for those buttons. One category is agility, another is defense, there's even one called, "Dummies."

"What's this one?" I ask, pointing to it. Callidus smiles, "That's the course where you can train by fighting robotic dummies. You can even choose who they look like. Why don't you give it a try?" Is he serious? You can fight a dummy and even choose who they look like? This is going to be awesome.

I press the level one button under "Dummies," and a keyboard pops out. A robotic voice says, "Please enter your opponent's full name." I type in 'Tom Gaiber.' I walk into the small training arena and Tom pops up. Wow, it looks exactly like him, no mistakes.

A bell rings and robot Tom attacks. I dodge every blow, except for a kick in the stomach. I fight back with a punch to the head, and a kick to the back. This is cool, they even _feel_ human. After a couple more punches, the robot Tom falls. It's like getting revenge for everything him and Bill have done to me, but without actually hurting them. Sweet.

I grin as I walk out the automatic doors. "Wasn't that exciting?" Callidus asks.

"Heck yeah! I think I'm going to enjoy this very much." Callidus opens a keypad, types a code into it and a watch pops out from a panel in the wall. He takes my wrist and puts the watch on it. This is a really awesome watch. There's a bunch of buttons. One for disguises, one for holograms, one for recording, one for GPS, one for the time, one for about everything!

"Be careful with this watch, Vlad. We don't want anything happening to it. Now, I have some business I need to take care of, so, why don't you have fun and train." He walks out of the room, leaving me in the coolest place he's ever been to- next to the Crypt of course.

The whole time, I try agility courses, defense systems, and beat up robotic Bill, Tom, and even D'Ablo. I try out every single button on the watch. This place is awesome! I want to come here every single day!

Three hours pass by, and Callidus walks back in. "It's time for you to get home, Agent Tod, your guardian will be home any minute now."

Before I can say anything, he presses a button on his watch, and I fall through a trap door. I pop up to Nelly's living room couch. Right after I hit it, Nelly comes in.

"Hello, Vlad. What have you been doing all day?"

"I've been at Henry's." I can't tell her about the whole secret agent thing, she would freak out! Not to mention she might ground me.

Nelly makes dinner and we chat. Night time finally comes. I check that Nelly's asleep, then I walk to my room and play with the watch some more.


	6. Confusion

There's a knock on the door, and in walks Henry. I had him come over so I could tell him all about the training room. He got excited. In fact, he got _really_ excited. He starts jumping on the couch like a hyper little kid. This isn't like Henry at all.

"Henry! Get down; you'll mess up Nelly's couch." He stops jumping, but he doesn't sit down.

"Come on dude, have some fun! I'm just really happy that you're enjoying your new job. So tell me, has he mentioned any missions yet?"

"No. He says I still need more training before I can go on a mission. But I don't mind, that training room is awesome! And check this out."

I press some buttons on my watch, and in a second I look exactly like Henry.

"Whoa! That's awesome! What else can it do?"

For the next hour I show him every single thing it can do. He watches it in awe, he absolutely adores it. But he's acting really different; not like himself. He hasn't talked about girls all day, and he's acting sort of like a five-year-old. After he breaks Nelly's vase, I finally say something, "Henry, are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm fantastic! Why?" How am I going to say this…?

"Well… it's just…you've been acting like a hyper little kid ever since a couple of days ago. You don't seem like yourself." He gets a blank stare and scratches his head in confusion, as if trying to make up an excuse.

"Vlad, you worry too much. I'm fine, really. Maybe you should go get your mind off things." That doesn't make me feel any better. Actually, it doesn't even make any sense. Henry takes my wrist and presses the transport button on my watch before I can say anything. Now that was definitely not normal. What's wrong with him? Is someone manipulating him? Is that really the Henry I know? Or am I just going insane? Why does the world never make sense for me?

I land in Callidus's office. He smiles his creepy smile, "Why hello Vlad, it's nice to see you again. How are things going?" Should I tell him? "Well… not very good actually. Henry's not being himself. He's gone completely nuts." His face gets pale and serious. Does he know something about this? Does he have something to do with it? The feeling in my gut comes back, like I can't fully trust this guy.

"Um… sir?"

"Hold on a minute Vlad, I need to go take care of something." Callidus walks-more like runs- out of the room. Maybe I can do a little snooping while he's doing whatever he's doing, he's apparently hiding something, and I intend to find out what.

I open the drawers to his desk. Nothing but files. In one drawer is a pile of classified files. On the top is a paper with the alphabet and numbers. Wait… it's a code. I hear footsteps coming down the hall. I quickly scan it with my watch to look at it in private, and then I shut the drawer and run back to the other side of the desk.

The door opens, and I see a very frustrated Callidus. "I'm sorry, Vlad. We had a little trouble with one of our operatives, but we have got it fixed." His voice sounds rushed. He just has to be hiding something from me. There's something he doesn't want me to know. We both stand in awkward silence.

"I'm going to go train."

"Alright, I'll see you later then Vlad."

As I run to the training room, I trip over something. It's a piece of paper, with the word _HELP!_ written on it. It's nearest to the door with the strange numbers. The _numbers_; it's written in that code I found. I'd try to decode it, but surely there are security cameras placed everywhere in this building. I'll do it later, back at Nelly's house, but I'll get a quick picture of the numbers so I actually can do it at Nelly's house.

I train for at least five hours with all these possibilities on my mind. I have a strong feeling this place isn't what I think it is. Callidus is up to something, and I need to figure out what. I beat up the last dummy of D'Ablo before transporting back home to think about this.


	7. Behind the Secret Door

I copy out the code from Callidus's office and the numbers on the door. The code starts out: A-1, B-2, C-3, etc. Wow, that's not what I expected from a top secret agency. The numbers on the door are: 16-18-9-19-15-14-5-18-19. Match it with the code: P-R-I-S-O-N-E-R-S. Prisoners? They have prisoners? What prisoners could they possibly have? I need to get inside that door, but I'm sure it's locked. He must have a key somewhere. I need to go soon, but I need a good plan. I'll need to shut down all the security cameras, so I won't be seen, then I need to find the key, which could be anywhere. It's easier said than done.

My watch has a map of the building, so I'll be able to find my way through with that. My watch also comes with some awesome guns and weapons. Plus, I can also disguise myself as a guard there. I hope this will go well, because my past plans always ended badly. I'm going to do it tonight, to get it over with. Plus my gut keeps feeling worse and worse the longer I wait.

It's a few minutes past midnight. I can't wait any longer; my chest feels like it will explode. I press buttons on my watch, and I change from my black t-shirt and jeans to a full guard uniform. I look in the mirror and gasp. I don't look at all like myself; it changes my face appearance to. Sweet; now this will hopefully be a little easier.

The halls to the agency building are dark. I don't see any guards around… yet. I need to get to the security room. After what feels like an eternity, I finally reach the right room. I stop breathing when I open the door; there's a guard in there. He looks at me in relief, "Thank goodness you're here. It's your shift now." I begin to breathe again. That wasn't so hard.

I frantically search for some sort of off switch. I guess I shouldn't have expected a huge red 'off' button for the cameras. I look for the category for cameras, then an off switch. I wonder how long it took to invent all this technology; they have millions of buttons. Fortunately, there's a switch that says on/off. This secret agency reminds me of all those old cartoons, with the ignorant antagonists'.

Now I have to find the key. It could be anywhere. If I'm lucky it won't be in Callidus's pocket. I put my ear to his office door. It's empty. I pick the lock and look through every drawer, every file cabinet, and everywhere. After all that searching, I see a big ring of keys on his desk. Well that was a waste of time.

I teleport to the door, and try every single key. When I find the right key, I also find that they were labeled that whole time. What is wrong with my brain today? I guess I'm just nervous, which I am. I hear breathing, and smell someone human. The scent is really familiar. I turn on the lights, and there's Henry, chains binding his body to a chair. He looks really beat up to. I get out of my disguise.

"Henry!" I take off the tape on his mouth.

"Vlad! What took you so long?"

"I had to find the keys and…"

"Find the keys? Couldn't you have just shot the door down with one of their super weapons?" What's wrong with me? You'd think I'd be smarter than this. While I break him out of his chains I ask,

"What did they do to you?"

"After you left my house a couple of days ago, gray smoke filled my front porch and I woke up in this room. They cloned everything about me so this little kid could take my place. They just tortured me for fun, like it was a sport." My stomach rumbles. Henry has fresh blood on him. After I break him out, a man steps into the room.

"Very good, Vladimir. I didn't think you'd figure it out this quickly." The man steps into the light. It's Callidus.


	8. Gone

"What are you doing? What do you want with me?" Cold metallic laughter- sort of like D'Ablo's- escapes from Callidus.

"Having trouble thinking, Vlad? It's probably because your knowledge- along with your pravus powers- is being drained from you this very second."

"What?" What is this guy talking about? He laughs again.

"Vlad, all we wanted from you was your vampire powers, and your knowledge of telepathy and mind control. All you had to do was wear the watch."

Oh crap. I try to take it off, but it won't budge. Then I try to with Henry, but it still won't come off. Callidus laughs again; it's getting really annoying.

"Don't waste your strength, Vlad, you'll need it. Besides, it won't come off anyway."

He presses a button and five agents walk in. They look really strong. I think I heard Callidus say, "Attack" but I'm not sure. Things are getting fuzzy. An agent comes up to me and cuts my stomach. I scream. There are other agents on Henry, but he's fighting for his life. I need to do something, but I don't know what to do. I'm forgetting how to fight, how to use my vampire strength.

A few minutes pass by and Henry gains a few seconds to get to my watch and transport us somewhere else. We land in the field that Joss staked me at two years ago.

"Vlad, contact Otis with your telepathy before you forget."

_Otis! Help! You need to get here now, before I forget everything I know! _

Before I can say more, I lose the connection. Now I don't know how to do that. I feel weaker to, like the strength and power within me is being drained straight from my core. Everything is blurry now, I can't remember much. I only know Henry now; I can't even remember what's wrong with me. Memories flash through my mind. When I met Henry, my breakup with Meredith, my parents, everything. And now they're gone. _Gone. _


	9. Torture

Henry:

Vlad looks paler than usual; his eyes are confused and wandering. He's bleeding, and the watch is stuck tight to his wrist. I hope Otis gets here soon; he'd know what to do. I try shaking him.

"Hen… Henry? What's going on?" Oh no, he doesn't know the situation he's in. I bet I'm the only bit of memory he's got left.

"Vlad, all your knowledge is being drained from your brain by this secret agency. Otis is coming to help. You need to remember!"

Otis runs over to us. "What's wrong Vladimir?"

"Who are you?"

Otis's eye's tear up. " Henry, what's wrong with him?"

I explain everything to him. Callidus, the watch, everything. "The watch is draining his vampire strength and his brain. He can't remember a thing. I don't even think he remembers how to think!" Vlad's eyes glow that iridescent purple. They stay that way for a long time. "Otis, what do we do?"

"We need to move. Callidus and his agents will be here anytime for Vlad. Then we need to find out how to get the watch off of him." Gray smoke surrounds us. It feels worse than the first time, like it's meant to kill us but it won't. Otis and I choke and fall on our knees, and then I feel intense pain. It's hurting me. I think there are people picking me up, but it's hard to tell.

Otis and I are chained back-to-back on the floor. Vlad is unconscious in a chair; the hand with the watch is inside this device. I'm sure it'll drain all the info from the watch to the computer. I see Callidus standing next to the controls of the machine.

"Why'd you put us in here with him?" He laughs again. I wonder if he was a clown before a villain.

"Because I wanted you to watch this."

He flips a switch, and Vlad starts screaming. It's the worst I've ever heard him scream. "NO! LET HIM GO YOU FREAK! WHY ARE YOU DOING THIS?" Vlad twitches and squirms with the screaming. Otis is trying his hardest to break free.

"Because I enjoy it. And if my team can have the powers of a vampire, we'll be invincible. And don't even try getting out of there, old fool. I put a little garlic on those chains."

Otis ignores him and keeps struggling. He looks really determined. It must torture him to see his nephew get tortured like that.

"It will take a while for all the information to transfer. I'll leave you to watch your loved one suffer."

After Callidus leaves, Otis gathers all the strength he has and breaks the chains off. Wow.

"How'd you do that Otis?"

"Love is more powerful than a little garlic, Henry. Now let's figure out how to reverse this thing before Callidus gets back."


	10. Escape

Vlad's screams echo in the room. Blood drips from the machine his wrist is in. Is this thing eating his arm? Literally? I shiver at Vlad's torture. I want it to stop. I want Vlad to be okay again. I want him to remember so he can beat up that stupid Callidus guy. Callidus, who'd doing this to my best friend. Callidus, who doesn't know what's coming for him. Vlad does another scream, and my hands clench into a fist. I want to go after him now. I want to show that freak what he gets for putting my best friend in pain.

"We can't go after him yet, Henry. We need to get Vlad to safety first." He was reading my mind? No fair. Vlad screams again, and we both wince. Tears fill Otis's eyes. "I just hope we can do it before it kills him." That last sentence makes me shoot a look at him.

"This thing can kill him?"

"Well just look at him, Henry. He's losing a lot of blood, and can't you hear how intense his screams are? Plus he has no knowledge of the world around him. Now please help me."

We try every button and switch that looks safe to touch. We turn it off, but we need to reverse it now. Vlad stops his screaming (thank goodness), but he's breathing very heavily, and he's still unconscious. At least he stopped screaming; it was scaring the crap out of me.

"I don't see any way to reverse this, Otis. What do we do?" Otis looks frantically at every button there is.

"There must be a code to turn it off, they're all numbered."

"There were numbers on the door that I was locked in. They decoded to prisoners."

"Then this should be much simpler. What word do you think they'd use?" That's not a very hard question; that Callidus guy is an idiot. I type in the numbers, and it starts going back to the watch. Vlad screams, but not as bad this time. After it's done we pull his arm out. I almost puke. Around where the watch is some blood is oozing out.

"Now we need to get Vlad to a hospital. Doesn't this have a transporting setting?" I press the buttons on Vlad's watch to get to Stokerton Hospital. Hopefully he'll be okay now.

I watch Otis as he toys with Vlad's watch. He's been at it for hours. During that time, I've helped the nurses bandage Vlad up, and I've even taken a nap. At least Vlad's heart beat his back to normal now. He still looks like he's in pain, though. If I didn't know better and if the heart monitor wasn't beeping, I would say that he's dead. Thank goodness he's still alive.

"Are you finding anything Otis?" Otis looks back at me. He's all sweaty and exhausted. I wouldn't blame him.

"Almost. I just need a few more minutes."

Otis hits the last switch. Vlad's body jumps, but not in pain. As I run to Vlad's side, huge, meaty arms grab me. Otis is fighting back, putting up a gargantuan fight. I try to struggle out, but to no avail. This big guy (and I mean _big_ guy) has me locked in his big arms. Other agents inject something in Otis, making him weak, and grab him to. I kick everywhere and knock over something by Vlad's bed. His eyes are opening.

"Vlad! Vlad!"


	11. The Sadistic Ways of Callidus

Vlad:

"Vlad! Vlad!" My eyes open to see Henry and an unconscious Otis being dragged out the door. Henry is screaming my name. Knowledge starts getting back to me. Everyone and everything I know about anything runs through my head- giving me a splitting headache. I also feel a lot of pain from my wrist, and my stomach. Most of all, I am way, _way_ thirsty.

"Vlad!" One second they're here, and the next they're gone. Okay, now I just need to remember what happened over the past couple of days. One name pops straight into my head: Callidus. He tricked me. And now he has Henry and Otis. Who knows what evil, sadistic, twisted, diabolical and horrific plan he has with them? But first…

Feeling all my strength returning, I rip that stupid watch from my wrist. It's not pretty what I see under it. I'm about to break it, but I stop myself. I'll need this to get to that freaky secret agency building. After I'm finished with Callidus, then I'll tear this thing to pieces.

I already know what door they're in. It's actually really obvious. This guy isn't very smart. There are tall and strong guards guarding the door. With my vampire speed, I punch them both in the stomach and whack them good on the head, so they won't attack me. I can hear Callidus's voice through the door.

"I'll get back to Vladimir later. You two must be punished, so you don't interfere with my plans again." Then screaming occurs. No. Opening the door, I yell,

"NO!" Callidus jumps at my protest.

"How nice of you to join us, Vladimir. I thought that you'd be dead by now. It was your darling uncle, wasn't it?" His knife heads toward Otis, I'm not going to let that happen.

"Don't touch him! Don't touch either of them! This is between you and me. Let them go!" He laughs his evil laugh. Man, this guy's such a stereotype. Evil laugh (for the thousandth time)? I mean come on!

"As much as I'd love to accept your offer, I can't. I enjoy my job a little too much." I run for him, but then he grabs Henry by the hair, "Don't come any closer, or your friend dies here and now." Great. Now he's using Henry against me. I observe him. He has a lot of cuts on his arms and face. Some are filled with fresh blood, some dried. How much did they have to go through to save me? The more I think about it the more my gut burns with guilt.

"Could you be more pathetic? You're just like a bad guy in those old cartoons; don't you have anything new?" That gets to him. He throws Henry to the floor and jumps to me. I quickly avoid his pounce. I try my best to keep myself from laughing. His face is going red.

"Trust me, Vladimir; you do not want to mess with me."

"And trust me when I say, you NEVER want to mess with me." We get into a brawl in the room. He punches me, I kick him. This is just like a movie. He grabs his knife and stabs my arm-my bad arm- to the ground, holding me down. I scream.

"Please, Vlad. You're in weak shape, and I have more weapons than you could imagine. Face it, you're hopeless." Pain throbs from my arm; blood is oozing out of it. Henry's lying on the floor, next to Otis. They both look miserable. They're both in pain because of me. This guy's going to get it.

"What kind of vampire are you?" I always know my eyes flash purple when anyone asks me that. I kick him off of me, crashing him into the computer. I take his knife out of my arm and throw it next to him for a warning. The wound is already starting to heal. I smell his blood. It's excited with fear. My fangs escape from my gums in intense thirst. I want to suck him dry so badly. But I can't. I vowed I wouldn't drink from another human again. Then Snow enters my mind. Sweet, innocent, _delicious…_ No! I can't let those thoughts take me over. Callidus sees my thirsty look.

"You're not thirsty, are you Vlad?" What's he planning? "You're welcome to take a bite out of me." No. I can't. I can't… "I insist. You must be absolutely famished from all the blood loss, the people all around you…" This guy is really getting on my nerves. He'd better watch it… "Please Vlad." He gets up and starts walking towards me, inviting me to dine on him. What's his problem? Doesn't he know he'll die? I realize I'm already running to him, then I take a bite.

Right after a pain fills my throat. Burning like fire. Garlic. It's garlic. That's why he wanted me to taste him; he knows I'll die. I fall to my knees, clutching my stomach. All I hear is his laugh, and he whispers close to my ear, "You've lost." The last thing I see is Otis beating the crap out of him. Then a wave of death takes me in.


	12. Thank Glob

I wake up and immediately sit up. I'm not dead. How is it I'm not dead? Could I be dreaming? I feel myself. A heartbeat. I'm alive. I'm alive! And I'm in a hospital bed. Again. Wearing ugly hospital clothes. Again. How many times since eighth grade have I been to a hospital? Oh, who cares? I'm alive! But how did the garlic in Callidus's blood not kill me? I know of only one answer: because I am the pravus. I can't deny it anymore. Too many near-death experiences have happened to me. Henry runs through the door.

"Vlad! You're alive!" After him Nelly walks in,

"Thank glob you're alright!" After her, Otis.

I manage to get up and give them all a hug. Nelly doesn't stop kissing me.

"Vladimir, I've been worried sick! Otis explained everything to me! You're lucky I don't ground you…"

"Nelly," says Otis in a calming tone, "He didn't tell you so you wouldn't worry. Why don't you wait outside so I can explain things to my nephew?" Nelly smiles and walks back out the door.

"Otis? Henry? What happened?"

They explain everything I missed. What really freaks me out is how much of my arm that machine ate.

"And what happened to Callidus?" Otis stays silent for a moment.

"Don't worry about him, Vladimir. I took care of him."

"Otis… you didn't…"

"I didn't kill him, Vlad. I made him my drudge and ordered him to never bother us again." Wow. Otis has a drudge. One that he won't ever see in his lifetime. The thought of Otis having a drudge makes me feel really weird. But at least I won't have to see Callidus's face ever again.

Author's note:

How did I do? Did everyone who read it like it? Any suggestions for future stories?


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